Citizens Access Review: Savings and CDs

Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This may influence which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own.

Overall bank rating

Savings

Savings

CD rates

CD rates

Banking experience

Banking experience

4.0

NerdWallet rating

The bottom line: Citizens Access, the online-only division of Citizens Bank, offers an FDIC-insured savings account and certificates of deposit with no fees and solid interest rates across the board. But there are some inconveniences: The bank doesn’t offer a checking account, has no mobile apps (though the site is mobile-first), and deposit accounts have a relatively high minimum opening deposit of $5,000.

Pros

Highly competitive savings account rate and CD rates.

No fees.

Cons

Relatively high minimum opening deposits of $5,000.

No checking account.

No mobile app, but offers a mobile-optimized website with a check deposit feature.

Full review

Citizens Access Online Savings Account

5.0

NerdWallet rating

APY

1.30%

With $5000 minimum balance

With an annual percentage yield of 1.30%, Citizens Access offers a strong online savings account in the current rate environment, and there are no monthly fees. However, the $5,000 minimum opening deposit is relatively high compared to other savings accounts, and you must maintain a $5,000 balance to get the higher APY. Balances below that earn 0.25%.

Citizens Access CD

4.5

NerdWallet rating

1-year APY

1.30%

3-year APY

1.35%

5-year APY

1.45%

Minimum Deposit

$5,000

Citizens Access offers certificates of deposit with competitive rates. Its one-year CD, for example, has an APY of 1.30%, and its five-year CD has an APY of 1.45%. But, as with the savings account, there's a fairly high $5,000 minimum to open.

Banking experience

4.0

NerdWallet rating

Citizens Access offers multiple channels of customer support, including live phone help even on weekends, email support and some help through social channels, including Twitter. Although Citizens Access currently doesn’t have any apps, its mobile-optimized website offers a check deposit feature as well as an excellent user interface.

Bear in mind that it does not offer checking accounts, so if you like to keep all your accounts under one roof, Citizens Access won’t be for you. Nor are wire transfers available; you can move money out of Citizens Access via account-to-account transfers or having a check mailed to you, but you won't be able to receive a wire transfer or fund the account with one.

Citizens Access Online Savings Account

5.0

NerdWallet rating

APY

1.30%

With $5000 minimum balance

With an annual percentage yield of 1.30%, Citizens Access offers a strong online savings account in the current rate environment, and there are no monthly fees. However, the $5,000 minimum opening deposit is relatively high compared to other savings accounts, and you must maintain a $5,000 balance to get the higher APY. Balances below that earn 0.25%.

Citizens Access CD

4.5

NerdWallet rating

1-year APY

1.30%

3-year APY

1.35%

5-year APY

1.45%

Minimum Deposit

$5,000

Citizens Access offers certificates of deposit with competitive rates. Its one-year CD, for example, has an APY of 1.30%, and its five-year CD has an APY of 1.45%. But, as with the savings account, there's a fairly high $5,000 minimum to open.

4.0

NerdWallet rating

Citizens Access offers multiple channels of customer support, including live phone help even on weekends, email support and some help through social channels, including Twitter. Although Citizens Access currently doesn’t have any apps, its mobile-optimized website offers a check deposit feature as well as an excellent user interface.

Bear in mind that it does not offer checking accounts, so if you like to keep all your accounts under one roof, Citizens Access won’t be for you. Nor are wire transfers available; you can move money out of Citizens Access via account-to-account transfers or having a check mailed to you, but you won't be able to receive a wire transfer or fund the account with one.

APY

1.30%

With $0 minimum balance

APY

1.15%

With $0 minimum balance

APY

1.15%

With $0 minimum balance

Bonus

N/A

Bonus

N/A

Bonus

$500

Requirements to qualify

RATING METHODOLOGY

NerdWallet’s overall ratings for banks and credit unions are weighted averages of several categories: checking, savings, certificates of deposit or credit union share certificates, banking experience and overdraft fees. Factors we consider, depending on the category, include rates and fees, ATM and branch access, account features and limits, user-facing technology, customer service and innovation. The stars represent ratings from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars). Ratings are rounded to the nearest half-star.

Disclaimer: NerdWallet strives to keep its information accurate and up to date. This information may be different than what you see when you visit a financial institution, service provider or specific product’s site. All financial products, shopping products and services are presented without warranty. When evaluating offers, please review the financial institution’s Terms and Conditions. Pre-qualified offers are not binding. If you find discrepancies with your credit score or information from your credit report, please contact TransUnion® directly.